NEW INTEL: "Made Right Here"

We just caught wind of a sweet new venture, and we want you know about it. American extraordinaires Joe Gannon, Max Wastler and Matt Springer announced a new T.V. project today. Taking into account the other made-in-America shows over the years, this is one of the most original ideas we've seen in quite a while.

It's called "Made Right Here," and it's dedicated to showcasing American-made products that have stayed strong by remaining here instead of going overseas. At its heart, it's about story. The story of Billy Moore (Cause and Effect), the unconventional Tennessee belt maker who I wrote about last week. The story of Imogene + Willie, the denim makers who watched sadly as their parent company moved production to Mexico and the Dominican Republic. The story of Pointer Brand, the outerwear maker that sources its materials from Kentucky, Texas, North Carolina, and elsewhere in the U.S.—and has since 1913. The story of people.

And it follows Max and Joe as they take a turn at making these items themselves. Here's Max:

"I say we made... Really, we tried and failed to make all these things. This is part of the story, too. These are craftspeople who've dedicated their lives to mastering a skill, a skill that is really tough to do."

There it is: the essence of why American craft is important, why it costs a little more and why peoples' livelihoods depend on you voting with your dollar. Give it a watch, and tell everyone you know.

We're proud to call these talented guys our friends.

THE RUNDOWN: NorthernGRADE

Behold: NorthernGRADE. Every September, some of the movers and shakers in American-made menswear descend into the cluttered, boozy labyrinth of the Architectural Antiques in Minneapolis to hawk their wares.

Inspired by NYC's Pop Up Flea, the ladies and gentlemen at J.W. Hulme Company and Pierrepont Hicks tie shop decided to add the Midwest to the conversation by founding their own market in 2010—which makes this the second of a (hopefully) annual tradition.

I hitched a ride up to the fest for the launch of Buckshot Sonny's, Max Wastler and Joe Gannon's vintage sporting goods store. (If you're not familiar yet, you should be.) It was hard to contain the excitement as it built over the 7.5-hour drive, and it wasn't long before there were copious amounts of rapping during the 3G-less stretches of Wisconsin and Minnesota. When we arrived, we weren't disappointed. What follow are simply snapshots punctuated by a few important quotes, because like many of the best experiences—you just kinda had to be there. Next year's your chance.

Buckshot Sonny's, named after Joe's grandfather Sonny and Max's dad, who they called 'Buckshot' as a kid, is "the store your grandfather would have taken your father to for his first baseball glove."

• "We want one of our baseballs or footballs to be the family picnic ball. When we're done, I'll give it to my son, and he'll give it to his, maybe." — Joe Gannon

Red Wing, this year's main sponsor.

Two fine fellows: Brad Bennett of Well-Spent and Mike Maher of Taylor Stitch.

Intelligentsia coffee was on site.

The Hill-Side, offered by BlackBlue.

The incomparable Billy Moore, of Cause and Effect, hawking his skins. "Buy some belts!" he barks.

One of the (many) interesting things about Billy is that he's not much for the indecisive. Like a maverick who pops up unannounced at spots all across the country, it's "Buy a belt here and now, or wait and see where I appear next."

And his process is nothing if not unique. It's all about the story for Cause and Effect—whether it's wading into a Tennessee river to drape a hide over a big, wet rock or hammering belts on a cobbled New York street.

You can read more about his process over at All PlaidOut, but here's a bit of lore he shared with me about his mysterious Mason jar full of moonshine. This particular batch, Billy says, was made by the son of Popcorn Sutton, the legendary Tennessee moonshiner. No one's heard from him since around 2009...possibly because he may not be alive any more.

"Popcorn Sutton been caught by the ATF for the fifth time," Billy says. "He had about 5,000 quarts of moonshine, and they were going to give him 30 days a gallon.

"The story goes that he killed himself rather than go to prison. But here's the thing: The only people who saw him dead were the sheriff and the coroner—who both happened to be his cousins."

The trick is to take a breath before you take a drink.

Billy had me make a belt, which you'll see in coming posts as we track its progress from natural leather to seasoned beauty.

One of the fine products from Duluth Pack, which we've written about before.

I had a chance to chat with Molly Solberg, Duluth Pack's marketing director, who filled me in on why the company's heritage matters to so many people:

• "We're fashionable because we're 120-plus years old, not because we're a flash in the pan."
• "You can walk into Walmart and by a $20 bag every season or spend $115 on one of ours and never buy another."
• "Every day, I walk through the sewing room. You'll see a bag made by Linda, a breast cancer survivor. We have a sewer, Suzie, who's been here for 20 years. Whatever we can do to help Suzie as she puts her kids through college, we're going to do."
• "Ultimately, you're employing Minnesotans and saving money over the long run."

A clever business card from Angie Sheldon.

Becca James, the editor of Pop 'stache, browses wool shirts offered by Greenwich Vintage.

On the culture of NorthernGRADE:

• 'Zen' Pomazi, one of the purveyors of Greenwich Vintage, is finding that men take a little longer to care about appearance and quality these days. But eventually, he says, a nostalgia kicks in, even though it might be for something they've never experienced themselves.
• "Guys get to a certain age—maybe they're getting married, maybe they're having kids—and they start to pay attention," Zen says. "They see some of this stuff, and they remember Dad."

And this, from Noah Zagor, is perhaps the best summation of why any of this matters:

"I had an uncle who was a geology professor at Oxford University," Noah says. "I remember visiting him, and he would point to the motto emblazoned on the gates: 'Manners Makyth Man.'"

Correction: An earlier version of this story misattributed the above quote. Our sincerest apologies to Noah. We regret the error.

Q&A: A look at Nonnie Threads

Meet Jonnie Rettele.

She's the mastermind behind Nonnie Threads, a small but remarkable menswear label that's designed fresh every season in a picturesque industrial space she shares with a few other entrepreneurial designers just south of Wicker Park. Behind each of Jonnie's designs is a story. These pieces are born out of rich traditions of American clothing, and with every new line, she channels a recognizable icon. Last year, it was Tom Waits. This year, Steve McQueen. You get the idea.

There are lots of reasons we love Jonnie Rettele. She's good at what she does. She tests her designs on her husband, Mustafa (score one for love). She's following her bliss, and she's passionate about clothing that's made in the U.S.A. And she sees that the American clothing industry needs a kick in the pants. She's challenging major players—shirting giants who have been around since the days when sailors were still kissing nurses in the streets. Yet, that doesn't phase her, because she's got a vision. And we like people with vision.

But here's the thing: America and quality, can be tough choices sometimes. And as good Midwestern boys, we grew up wearing hand-me-downs and having our mothers yank our hands down thrift store aisles. We still remember when we thought retail-priced jeans from American Eagle were a treat. But we're on a sartorial journey, which means that we're constantly evaluating—being thrifty most of the time, splurging on superiority some of the time, and trying to be sensible all of the time.

That's why we caught up with Jonnie at her studio—to test a couple of her pieces for ourselves and see if American-made quality is still worth the money.

Midwestyle: So let's tackle the issue of quality clothing. A lot of guys are hesitant to support pricy American goods because they can get cheap alternatives elsewhere. What's the difference?

Jonnie Rettele: I think you can tell. The fabrics are the first thing. It feels cheap, it feels thin, it feels starchy—and not in a clean way. Like it was just unloaded from a piece of plastic.

I was born in York, Neb. It's a smaller town with not a lot of industry. If they were to ask what my clothes cost, I think they might scoff. Their favorite place to shop is Walmart, and I understand that because I know what living a small town is like. But factory jobs went away from that town, and it's directly related: When you buy goods that come from other places, you're supporting manufacturing leaving. I'm trying to support local economy coming back here.

Part of it is also the environmental cost. It may be cheaper to import those materials, but it has hidden negative impacts other places, like the carbon footprint.

I used to buy pants from Zara, and after about 10 washes, the coloring would fade. That's something I try to do: Get my husband or people I know in the clothes so I can know how it's washing and know how it's wearing. I want to know exactly what this fabric is doing and be able to tell you.

And the details cost money: the seams, the stitching, the attention to detail. Those are difficult things to mass-produce. You're paying for a special piece; you're paying for a story.

MWS: What kind of story? You make a jacket that has a pretty interesting genesis, right?

JR: My father-in-law worked as a night security guard at Marshall Fields, and he started bringing all these coats over. They're just beautiful: amazing lining, amazing craftsmanship. I didn't realize that things aren't made that way anymore.

He used to save his money and buy two pairs of one type of coat in two different sizes. So, he's got this long leather coat with a shearling inside and a notched collar, and he bought it in a size 40 and a size 42. My husband's wearing the 40 now, and his dad's wearing the 42. He used to wear the 40 when he got it in the '60s or '70s.

MWS: Jeff and I were just talking about this the other day. Is timeless style something to shoot for?

JR: Clothing should last. A really inspiring element from my father-in-law is how he takes care of things. He gave us all these cashmere sweaters from Marshall Fields—probably 20 of them in different colors, crew-necks, V-necks, cardigans—and they were all individually bagged, perfectly folded.

I think that's something that men don't learn as much today—because everything is so expendable. You go to H&M or you go to the Gap, and "This is only a $20 shirt, so I don't really care if it gets a hole in it, or if I wash it with a dark color and it's a white; I'll just buy a new one." It's okay to spend the money on something if you're going to take care of it.

The story of Nonnie Threads just sort of happened, and it had a lot to do with being partnered with someone who was at point in his life that he wanted to start dressing like a man. And part of it was also being at the tail end of this long dry spell in menswear.

MWS: So what was it about menswear that pulled you in?

The energy from guys. Women are excited when they meet someone who's doing womenswear, but not as much guys when they meet someone who's doing menswear. It's not as common. And I think there was such a dry period in menswear in the past five years.

Trends don't move as fast as womenswear. There's a challenge because men will only go so far. I think they're getting more adventurous, which is good, and that can be a result of lots of menswear lines popping up and you have to do something different to stand out.

Then, all of a sudden, it's booming. The whole heritage movement has sparked that, where people are paying attention to where things come from.

MWS: What about here in the Midwest? When you think of menswear here, what comes to mind?

JR: Casual. You think of the West Coast, you think of board shorts and surfer wear. East Coast, you think of more tailored fashion. But the Midwest is casual. Maybe it's because a lot of us are from working-class farm families. I feel like sometimes the Midwest is really sheltered.

MWS: Last question. What's on the radar for menswear?

JR: I've been wearing vests since I was like in third grade, so I was really excited when vests came back in style. One thing I'm questionable about is the whole "bold color" thing. I don't think that will stick around as long as, say, the shawl collar. You'll probably see that for a number of seasons. Something I want to experiment with is more cowl necks with T-shirts. It's sort of peasant-y. Since there's so much more energy with menswear right now, I feel like there's a relevant need for having faster trends.

Here are a a couple of the pieces we picked up from Nonnie:

Seth, wearing the shawl-collar pullover by Nonnie Threads.

Jeff, wearing the slim-fit mushroom trousers by Nonnie Threads.

Over the next while, we'll be keeping an eye on how they hold up. In the meantime, you can follow @NonnieMen on Twitter. And check out her online store that opened just a couple of weeks ago. If you see something that strikes your fancy, let her know we sent you.

Photos of the Nonnie Threads studio by Seth Putnam. Photos of Jeff and Seth by Anthony Barlich.